Lack of police diversity raising concerns

STOCKTON - A dry-erase board prominently displayed on the wall of a second-floor recruiting office at the Stockton Police Department lists the number of officers in the force at 331.

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By Scott Smith

recordnet.com

By Scott Smith

Posted Jun. 23, 2013 at 12:01 AM

By Scott Smith
Posted Jun. 23, 2013 at 12:01 AM

» Social News

STOCKTON - A dry-erase board prominently displayed on the wall of a second-floor recruiting office at the Stockton Police Department lists the number of officers in the force at 331.

It names five more due to be sworn in July 1.

The board is a constant reminder to a team of recruiters that they're in a battle to keep inching that figure higher. Stockton is the state's second-most violent city with a dismally small number of officers for its overall population.

The magic number for the recruiting staff is 344, when the city can tap a federal grant that will pay for an additional 17 officers. City leaders have designs on adding 120 more officers, if voters approve a 3/4-cent sales tax later this year.

At a time when the city is in a full-court press to boost its police force, Councilman Elbert Holman wants to know why more of the city's officers aren't black, reflecting the community they're sworn to serve.

"The makeup of the police department is a little out of whack," Holman said. "It's a big concern of mine."

Holman stated his thoughts in a recent budget study session, pressing administrators at City Hall to hire more racially diverse officers. Policing a city like Stockton becomes more effective when the officers look like the people in the neighborhoods, he said.

The numbers back up Holman. Stockton has a black population of 12 percent, but the police department consists of six black officers, fewer than 2 percent.

Officer Joe Silva, a spokesman for Police Chief Eric Jones, said they're painfully aware of the problem. They're taking a two-pronged approach, first by sending minority recruiters to job fairs, colleges and academies.

They've also taken a long-term tactic, reaching out to high school counselors and coaches to find teenagers in local schools they can mentor through a cadet and Sentinels program.

This is an investment with the payoff to the department years down the road, but it builds personal relationships with the potential recruit, which is key, Silva said.

"Not only are you learning about law enforcement, but you're developing contacts with the police department," he said. "It gives you an advantage over someone else that might be applying from outside."

The department recently produced a high-quality promotional video that will show this summer at more than 50 movie screens throughout the county. The film ends with the text: "Look no further. We have a career for you."

A challenge for Stockton is that it is in competition with police agencies throughout the state that are hiring, and Stockton is losing seasoned officers because of the city's financial troubles and uncertainty under bankruptcy.

The city's few black officers include a sergeant and a child abuse detective. James Manor was named Officer of the Year in 2012.

Teresia Haase, director of the city's Human Resources Department, said that about 11 percent of applications come from blacks - representing the community makeup - but somewhere along the lines in the screening process, they're not advancing.

Holman, who retired from law enforcement after 34 years, said he, Councilmen Michael Tubbs and Moses Zapien have met with Chief Jones to find out what is eliminating the candidates.

He said he's not asking to lower the rigorous standards, but he suggested that the cultural differences might come into play in questions candidates are asked in the psychological screening.

"If we're getting a large number of African-Americans to apply, why aren't they showing up at the hiring time?" Holman said. "We need to explore it."

Earlier this year, Holman said he attended an NAACP event at San Joaquin Delta College to talk with students about careers in law enforcement, and just three approached him, signaling alarm.

Holman grew up on Stockton's south side and joined the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office shortly after the Watts riots, at a time when becoming a police officer wasn't popular among blacks, he said.

Despite that, Holman said he and others he grew up with went on to have successful careers. Their presence in tense situations that could have ended badly made a difference, he said. Recruiting from out of town is folly, he said.

"They're here," he said. "We've just got to get them to apply. ... Maybe we should go overboard to let other ethnicities know we want them."

Sgt. Kathryn Nance, president of the Stockton Police Officers' Association, said she agrees that the city needs to push for a diverse police force, but she warned against lowering the standards to make it happen.

The department has experienced a low number of internal investigations because of the high caliber of officers Stockton has been able to hire, she said.

"We need more officers - period," she said. "We don't need officers of any sort of race or sex. I would encourage everybody to apply who's interested."